


The Girl in the Alley

by oneill



Category: Demon's Souls
Genre: Gen, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-02
Updated: 2013-09-02
Packaged: 2017-12-25 09:16:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/951350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oneill/pseuds/oneill
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the fic_promptly prompt: Demon's Souls, Astraea and Garl, first meeting</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Girl in the Alley

The first time I saw her, she was crouched in an alley, the hem of her tunic soaking in a filthy puddle. I almost walked right past her--I sought a priest, and this girl carried neither mace nor shield, wore no chain mail of any kind. Yet she looked so out of place that it gave me pause, and as I hesitated in the mouth of the alley, she pulled a talisman from her sleeve to clasp in both hands.

I stepped closer, curious about the beneficiary of her miracle. The limp frame of a one-eyed dog lay at her knees, ragged wounds showing red and brown and black on the patches of mange-bared skin. Only the slight movement of its jutting ribs gave proof of the life that remained within.

Golden light pulsed softly through the alley, and the dog whimpered as its wounds knit themselves together. Downy fur blossomed over the bare skin, standing out clearly amid the creature's matted pelt. Even its missing eye regrew, which was surprising, given how old that particular injury had seemed.

Its body mended, the dog staggered upright and gave itself a shake. Then its eyes focused on the girl, and it crouched.

I barely managed to push her back and put myself between them before the dog lunged. It recoiled off my heater shield, snarling. Its newly regrown hackles bristled.

"Go," I said, in the steady voice that Father had taught me to use when commanding a dog. It hesitated then, so I took a step forward, shield still raised. " _Go_."

The dog took an uncertain step back, its lips still curled. Then it slunk deeper into the alley and melted into the shadows.

I sighed and re-slung my shield before turning back toward the girl to offer her a hand up. "Are you all right?"

She remained crouched against the wall, her eyes darting over me. No doubt she recognized the gleaming, white metal armor of a temple knight trainee, but the unfamiliarity of my face seemed to concern her.

"Ah, forgive me," I said, presenting my family crest for her inspection. "I am Garl Vinland, younger brother to Selen, son to Celio and Alethea, and newly summoned to the Cathedral of Saint Vaka. Are you the cleric called Astraea?" Even as I asked, I doubted myself. This girl seemed too young to have received ordination. But then, what novice could work such a miracle?

"I am," she said, her voice soft but sure. She accepted my hand now, and I carefully helped her to her feet.

"I am sorry to have treated you so coarsely."

Astraea shook her head. "You acted in my defense."

"You are unharmed, then?"

"I am. Thank you, Garl Vinland. But why--"

"Garl!" called Selen's voice, and I turned to see her jogging into the alley. "Ah, good. You've found her. I am glad to see you well, Astraea." Selen placed an arm around the girl's small shoulders and half-guided, half-pushed her back toward the main street. "Come, now. Let us to the church. You really mustn't disappear like that. The elders are in a panic. Whatever were you doing in a place like this?"

Astraea remained silent, so I said, "There was a dog--" before the downward cast of Astraea's eyes silenced me. The words could not be unspoken, however, and I saw Selen's jaw tighten.

"Truly, your fathomless compassion is a wellspring of God's love," Selen said at length. "Were it more mindfully directed, I can only imagine what you might achieve. To think of the good you shall do one day, through the life of one who can repay your kind deed--a knight who goes on to save our liege lord, perhaps."

"Knights may turn to betrayal; a dog may alert the guard to save a city," said Astraea. Selen looked down at her in surprise, as did I. Those who were not already overawed by the Vinland name were usually cowed by Selen's forceful nature. Astraea's gaze remained fixed on her own clasped hands. "We, bound by the limits of our human wisdom, cannot say."

"Yes, that is true," said Selen. "Perhaps it was God's hand that led you to this place, after all. Perhaps that dog will save thousands of lives."

"Can lives be so reckoned? Does a life have no meaning, if no one else is saved?"

"I . . ."

Astraea looked up, not at Selen, but at the unclouded vault of the heavens. "Try as I might, I cannot conceive of a thousand lives, or even a hundred. To me, it is like trying to see all the leaves on a tree, all at one glance. It overwhelms me." Astraea stopped in the middle of the road and looked to Selen now, supplication in her knit brow, in the downward curve of her lips. "The world is vast, so I suppose one life alone _is_ of no significance. But that one life is all I can see. In that moment, it is everything."

Selen dropped to her knees in a clatter of armor and bowed her head. The people around us stopped to stare, for what need has a knight clad in sacred dull gold to kneel to a mere girl? A few shifted uncomfortably, as though uncertain whether they ought to kneel as well. All drew back to a respectful distance.

"Forgive me."

"Selen! No, I--"

"I spoke presumptuously, Your Holiness. You may be too young yet to join the canon, but that is no excuse."

I tried to swallow, but my mouth was dry. "Sister, what are you saying?"

"It has yet to be announced officially, but Father meant to tell you on his return. I cannot think he will mind your hearing it from me." Selen turned her head slightly, that she might look at me from the corner of her eye while remaining bowed. "Astraea bears a holy relic. She will ascend as the Sixth Saint the day she comes of age. That is why the House of Vinland is charged with her guardianship. It is for her sake that you are summoned here, Garl." She lowered her face once more and closed her eyes. "As guardian of your mortal vessel, I forget myself at times. Please, forgive me."

Astraea knelt to rest a hand on Selen's spaulder. "There is nothing to forgive, Selen Vinland. So please, raise your head."

As they both rose to their feet, I found that I could not truly comprehend what I had learned. I looked at Astraea and saw her still as the girl in the alley, crouched over a dying mongrel. The concept of sainthood was no clearer to me than were those thousand faceless souls, those innumerable leaves.

But I could see the one before me--a diptych of human frailty and divine strength--and in that moment at least, that one life was everything.


End file.
